Supporting Equality With a Cup of Tea

Equality is more than just women getting the vote, both here in the United Kingdom, and in North America…but there are still places where women aren’t legally allowed to vote. There is so much inequality in the world; the #metoo campaign, the reporting of unequal wages for equal work is still rampant (although technically illegal), and even the way many people still only talk to a male during a purchase and ignoring the female, even if she’s the one making the purchase. And then there are the inequalities surrounding race, religion, class, and much more….don’t even get me started on those!

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Here in the UK, 2018 marks 100 years since The Representation of the People Act 1918 extended the right to vote to all men over 21 and the first women, making this one of the most important centenaries in British democratic history. Ten years later The Representation of the People (Equal Franchise) Act 1928, gave all men and women over 21 the right to vote. These acts followed years of campaigning, with the first petition to Parliament asking for votes for women presented to the House of Commons on 3 August 1832.

To mark the centenary of The Representation of the People Act 1918 which paved the way to men and women over 21 gaining the right to vote ten years later, we have signed up to EqualiTeas, which gives people across the UK the chance to share, debate, and celebrate what equality means to them over a cup of tea, will take place between 18 June and 2 July.

I have been doing my best to raise my children to be respectful of all people and to know that differences are what make each individual interesting and unique. Many a time they will have seen me upset with frustration at the way people or groups of people are treated, both right here in our own town, as well as the wider world. This isn’t something that can be learned in a quick lesson or two, but rather, it takes a lifetime of learning and understanding.

Things have certainly come a very long way in the 45 years since I was born; and even in the past 10 years since having children, but there is still so much more that needs to be done to educate our youth (and many adults, as well), both to change viewpoints, but also to instil an open mind from the beginning; that’s where real change will come from, in my opinion.

In addition to participating in EqualiTeas (with some brilliant new worldly tea varieties from Adagio Teas, too!), my children are also watching a BBC show about Suffragettes, at Tristan’s request as he saw a few minutes of it before going to bed and said it looks interesting to him. You can watch it, and find links to more information here. There is also some BBC information for children here.

Sometimes timing is everything and it just so happens that by coincidence we are reviewing some White House Holidays unit studies and the unit on Labor Day, though dealing much with child labour, was very applicable to the fight for equality as well.

Let’s all set the foundation for our children to grow up experiencing less inequality and fighting for equality in all areas of life. It’s hard to believe that our local politician equates breastfeeding babies to indecency while there are billboards and advertising (not to mention page 3 of certain so-called newspapers) that are considered perfectly acceptable leaving very little to the imagination…and before we know it, our children will have the right to vote who they want in their constituency, so watch out!

David Clark, Head of Education and Engagement at UK Parliament, said “We can only work towards a more equal society by communicating with each other and building stronger communities, so please sign up for EqualiTeas to share the things we have in common and debate the changes we would like to see.”

The UK Parliament Vote 100 programme includes a wide range of events and activities commemorating the women and men who fought to achieve electoral equality.

So join with us and raise a cuppa and plot discuss how our children can help the future world through their knowledge and actions!

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